diff --git a/src/lib/export/__tests__/backup-key-ids.test.ts b/src/lib/export/__tests__/backup-key-ids.test.ts
index 7de5089ab..03377c809 100644
--- a/src/lib/export/__tests__/backup-key-ids.test.ts
+++ b/src/lib/export/__tests__/backup-key-ids.test.ts
@@ -77,9 +77,12 @@ describe("innerCiphertextKeyId", () => {
     expect(innerCiphertextKeyId(legacy)?.keyId).toBe("v1");
   });
 
-  it("ignores an empty value and one that is not base64", () => {
+  it("ignores an empty value, a short one, and one that is not base64", () => {
     expect(innerCiphertextKeyId("")).toBeNull();
-    expect(innerCiphertextKeyId("not ciphertext at all!")).toBeNull();
+    expect(innerCiphertextKeyId("yes")).toBeNull();
+    expect(
+      innerCiphertextKeyId("not ciphertext at all, and long enough to count!"),
+    ).toBeNull();
   });
 });
 
@@ -122,7 +125,9 @@ describe("assessBackupKeys", () => {
     useKeys({ old: K1, cur: K2 }, "cur");
     const file = {
       moodEntries: [{ noteEncrypted: bytesString("fine") }],
-      appSettings: { adminAiKeyEncrypted: "gone.QUJDRA==" },
+      appSettings: {
+        adminAiKeyEncrypted: `gone.${Buffer.alloc(40).toString("base64")}`,
+      },
     };
     const collector = new BackupKeyIdCollector();
     collector.visit(file);
diff --git a/src/lib/export/backup-key-ids.ts b/src/lib/export/backup-key-ids.ts
index f3d614940..44b0ff0e7 100644
--- a/src/lib/export/backup-key-ids.ts
+++ b/src/lib/export/backup-key-ids.ts
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ const VERSIONED = /^([A-Za-z0-9_-]{1,32})\.[A-Za-z0-9+/=]+$/;
 const BASE64 = /^[A-Za-z0-9+/]+={0,2}$/;
 const BASE64_TAIL = /^[A-Za-z0-9+/=]*$/;
 const BYTES_CODEC_VERSION = 0x02;
+const MIN_CIPHERTEXT_CHARS = 40;
 
 /** How an inner value is laid out, which decides how a sample is opened. */
 export type InnerCiphertextForm = "string" | "bytes-string" | "binary";
@@ -55,7 +56,10 @@ export interface InnerCiphertext {
  * multi-megabyte document costs the same as a note.
  */
 export function innerCiphertextKeyId(value: string): InnerCiphertext | null {
-  if (value.length === 0) return null;
+  // The shortest ciphertext either codec writes is 28 bytes (nonce and tag),
+  // 40 characters as base64: anything shorter is not ciphertext, and reading
+  // it as a legacy value would demand a key for a field that holds none.
+  if (value.length < MIN_CIPHERTEXT_CHARS) return null;
   const versioned = VERSIONED.exec(value.slice(0, 64));
   if (versioned && value.indexOf(".") === versioned[1].length) {
     return { keyId: versioned[1], form: "string" };